2013 Week 12 NCAA Football Top 25: The Tailgater Poll

Ricardo Lewis was in position to make the miracle play that significantly raised the stakes for the Iron Bowl. [Jason Getz/Atlanta Journal-Constitution]

Once again a Stanford result shakes up the polls. One week after knocking off Oregon in a dominant display, the Cardinal couldn’t get past a depleted USC defense. And now, thanks to the Stanford defeat and a 44-21 win over Utah, the Ducks are back atop the Pac-12 North and the highest-ranked team from the conference.

There is still the matter of that one loss for Oregon; unless at least three of the four teams ahead of them lose, their only outlet for a trip to Pasadena is the 100th Rose Bowl Game. None of the top four teams shifted position this week as the field consolidated their spots with victories. But there is also still plenty of football to be played, and the way events have transpired everywhere from the Plains to Los Angeles we could still see some movement yet.

How did all of this affect the poll this week? Before we go any further, here’s how our ballots combined to form the Week 12 poll after the first weekend of November football:

RANK

TEAM

POINTS

LAST WK

1

Alabama (3)

75

1

2

Florida State

72

2

3

Baylor

68

3

4

Ohio State

67

4

5

Oregon

63

6

6

Clemson

58

7

7

Missouri

56

8

8

Auburn

54

8

9

Michigan State

50

10

10

Oklahoma State

45

13

11

Wisconsin

43

12

12

Fresno State

41

11

13

Northern Illinois

38

15

14

UCF

37

14

15

Stanford

35

5

16

Texas A&M

30

16

17

South Carolina

25

16

18

Louisville

24

16

19

UCLA

23

19

20

Arizona State

18

21

21

LSU

14

21

21

Oklahoma

14

23

23

Duke

11

NR

24

USC

8

NR

25

Minnesota

5

27

ALSO RECEIVING VOTES: Mississippi (1)

Stanford’s loss facilitated the one big fall of the day, as the Cardinal dropped 10 spots from fifth to 15th. Their loss was USC’s gain, which made its first appearance in the Tailgater Top 25 since the preseason. Now 5-1 under Ed Orgeron, there is still an outside chance that the Trojans could play for the Pac-12 championship. (They need UCLA to beat Arizona State, then Arizona to beat Arizona State, and finally to knock off UCLA in their rivalry game.)

Two teams rose up into the rankings this week, while several others plummeted out. In came Duke, now leading the ACC Coastal after a resounding victory over the Miami Hurricanes, along with the Trojans. We also saw Minnesota consolidate position in the 25th spot, while powerhouse programs Texas and Miami both fell from the rankings after sustaining another loss on the season. All in all, the majority of the shake-up took place in the final five spots of the poll this week.

That said, you’ve probably got a different opinion than us. With the spirit of contention in mind, you will find our individual ballots below. Leave your personal picks, acrimonious invective, base insults, insulting suggestions, or belligerent rants down in the comments below. You’re also always welcome to hit up any of us on Twitter to offer a piece of your mind…